Assembly clamp for lamp holders



March 22, 1949. j P. J. LEPOR-E ASSEMBLY CLAMP FOR LAMP HOLDERS Filed March 29, 1946 'lNVENTOR asquafe .J-Lepore BY I I, ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 22, 1949 ASSEMBLY CLAMP FOR LAMP. HOLDERS "Pasquale J. 'Lepore, 'Somervil'l'e; Mass.,ass'i gnor" to Sylvania Electric Products'I'nc Salem, Mass., a corporation of 'Massachusetts Application March 29, 194.6,;Serial No..658,118

3 Claims. (Cl. 240- 5111) invention relates to'a device for assembling "and'securing component parts of a lightingfix- *tnre and particularly to lamp holders therefor and the manner in which they are secured to the fixture.

An object of the invention is to provide a rigid and eificient means for attaching a lamp holder to a fixture.

A further object of -the invention is toprovide a simplified means for assembling and installing a lamp holder in a fixture.

A further object of the invention is to provide a singledevice having a multiple function acting to secure the holder to the fixture and to secure a bottom closure thereto.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device "which greatly facilitates the procedure for assembling and installing a lamp holder in'a fixture.

The invention consists principally of a unitary member in the form of a clamping unit or clip used in combination with a conventional lamp holder. The clamping member is generally shaped having upper and lower substantially parallel extensions one of which projects over the bottom of the base portion of a lamp holder and the other extends into the material of the base. Thus the clamp or clip embraces and is anchored to a portion of the base of the holder.

The lower extension acts to secure an insulating closure plate upon the bottom of the holder while the upper extension is provided with a threaded aperture to receive a screw for attaching the holder to a fixture.

To provide a better understanding of the invention a particular embodiment thereof will be described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view in section showing the manner in which the invention is applied to a fixture for electric discharge lamps.

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the component parts of the device.

Fig. 3 illustrates a modified form of the clamping element of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a partial cross sectional view of the assembled device.

The invention is illustrated herein as applied to a simple conventional type of lighting fixture for fluorescent lamps but may be applied to any fixture in which discharge lamp holdersare used.

In the commercial production of fixtures of the type herein considered the rapid and accurate assembling of their component parts presents many problems not the least of which is the holding of the parts in correct position whilescrews or other fasteners are introduced and made fast. The type of lamp holder to which the invention is applied consists of a body 5 portion! in the outer .end of which is formed .a recess 2 within which ,is received the contact pins of the lamp .3. The holder is also provided with an enlarged baseportion '4 which is hollow to receive conductors not shown having means for connection to a source of energy. The base 4 islarger than the body! to present a fiat upper face 5 whichserves as the attaching face for securing the socket to its fixture.

After the wiring operations have been completed the open end of the .base 4 must be closed. To close and insulate the holder base a'plate 6 of fibre or other suitable material is secured thereto. Prior to the present invention it has-been common "practice to provide a long screw or bolt passing through the holder supporting member, through the base of'thehol'der and through the plate 6 and the whole assembly held together with a nut upon the end of the bolt. Obviously all of these members must be properly positioned and suitable apertures therein aligned while the bolt is placed in position and its nut tightened. To efficiently assemble the fixture in the above manner the services of a highly skilled operator and an excessive period of time is required.

Applicants invention provides a clamp or clip member 1 having a generally C-shaped conformation with upper and lower horizontally projecting portions 8 and 9. The portion 9 of the clip is provided with a threaded aperture l0 and extends into a laterally disposed recess II in the base 4. The portion 8 of clip 1 extends along the bottom of the base 4 and acts to hold the plate 6 in position upon the bottom of the base 4.

Desirably the portion 9 may desirably have a reversely bent portion 12 which is spaced a short distance from and is disposed substantially parallel to the main section of the projection 9. Desirably but not necessarily the clip is made of sheet spring metal and the two sections of the extension are spaced apart suificiently to be firmly frictionally held in the recess ll. While it is desirable that both sections of the extension 9 be provided with registering apertures only one section need be threaded such as the aperture Ill. Desirably the aperture I0 is of the extruded type to provide additional engagement with the screw I3.

In Fig. 3 a modified form of clip M is shown. 55 This clip M has a generally C-shaped conformation similar to the clip I and is provided with a resilient portion I 5 adapted to extend over the plate 6 while its portion I 6 has secured thereto a relatively heavy section I! of metal. The section I] may be secured in position in any suitable manner as by spot welding. A threaded aperture I8 is provided in the heavy section I! and the section IS in which the screw I3 is received.

To assemble the holder to the fixture after its electrical connections are made the clip 1 is forced upon the base of the holder'with its portion 9 Within the recess II and its bottom portion 8 overlying and securing the plate 6 in position. The holder and all of its component parts are thus held in their proper relative positions permitting the socket to be handled rapidly and without particular attention to displacement of the parts. The holder may then be moved into proper position on the fixture with its body portion projecting through an aperture in the reflector l9 or other part of the fixture. The screw I3 is then fed through an aperture in the reflector l9 and then through the aperture in the base of the socket and into the threaded aperture ID in the clip 1. The section 9 of the clip acts as a nut and when the screw is tightened down upon the reflector the whole assembly is held rigidly together.

It will be noted that one relatively short screw is used to secure all of the parts together.

The practice of the invention greatly reduces the total time consumedin assembling the fixture and insures maximum accuracy of structure and permanence of the finished product.

What I claim is:

1. In combination a support, a tubular discharge lamp holder having a lamp receiving portion and an open ended hollow base, a flat insulating closure for the base, a generally C-shaped clip having one of its clamping arms extending over and holding said closure in place, the second clamping arm embracing at least a portion of said base and having a threaded aperture therein and a screw received in said aperture engaging said support and acting to clamp the holder thereto.

2. In combination, a support, a tubular discharge lamp holder having a-lamp receiving portion and an open ended hollow base, a flat insulating closure for the base, said base presenting a, flat attaching face opposite to its bottom face, a recess in said base between its attaching and bottom face, a generally C-shaped clip having one of its clamping arms extending over and holding said closure in position and its other clamping arm extending into said recess, a screw extending through said support and having threaded engagement with the last named arm of said clip, said screw acting to secure the holder in position with its attaching face engaging said support.

3.- A combination having the elements defined in claim 2 and in which the said clip is made of strip metal its last named clamping arm having a portion bent back upon itself to form a double layer.

PASQUALE J. LEPORE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,115,600 Weston Apr. 26, 1938 2,264,141. Nemerofi Nov. 25, 1941 2,277,468 Welch Mar. 24, 1942 2,324,683 Despard July 20, 1943 2,328,757 Tinnerman Sept. 7, 1943 2,399,958 Tinnerman May 7, 1946 2,403,240 Sawin July 2, 1946 

